Thursday, 10 December 2015

1. Christmas
I had to put this one first because, well, its Christmas. Cheesy songs, delicious meals and nights in watching festive movies. It is the perfect time to relax and get together with the family. Yep, even those cousins you haven't seen for a decade. Spreading love becomes everyone's motto and even those grumpy neighbours grant you a smile - your life is complete!

2. You can eat whatever you want
Take that extra piece of chocolate or third hot chocolate of the day - who cares? No one has a summer body in winter and it's beautiful. Whenever you feel a bit bloated you just throw on your massive jumper and it's impossible to tell. When your nan cooks there's no holding back anyways!

3. Cosy evenings in front of the fire
Sitting in front of a fire with a hot chocolate and a good song playing is one of the best things in life. Even if your fire is fake. The thought is what matters.

4. Christmas lights
Yes, this is a separate point from Christmas as the lights are a whole thing on their own. I mean, there's been tons of towns hosting 'light ups' around me and they were all spectacular. It's not every day that a giant tree gets lit up while people are singing holy night underneath. Even if it's not as romantic as I thought...

5. Snow
Living in England, we don't get this a lot. And when we do the whole transport system breaks down for a week. However nothing beats the magic of the first snowflakes on a cold winter morning or frantically running around the garden while trying to build a snowman.

6. Hot drinks
Whether you're into Starbucks' Gingerbread Latte or just a simple hot chocolate, winter is THE season for hot drinks. They can save your life when you're out shopping for gifts and it's freezing. And don't even get me started on the amazing sensation of having that first Peppermint Mocha of the season.

7. Layers
Too cold? Just throw on another piece of clothing. You could technically wear all your fave pieces of clothing at once and it would be fine! (Also us girlies don't have to shave the legs)

8. Candles
The candles in wintertime are always the best. I mean you can't beat a Yankee candle that smells like Christmas baking can you? Also candles are so much more effective when it's dark outside, which is pretty much most of the day in winter.

9. the TV programme
The closer it gets to Christmas, the better the TV programme gets. Harry Potter basically runs on loop and the Grinch is finally making his comeback. Oh and Michael Buble is singing himself through several shows as well.

10. New Years
New Year, new opportunities, new me. That's the plan. The feeling you get when you count down to a new year is indescribable and that alone makes winter amazing. Bring on the champagne and fireworks!Tell me your favourite thing about winter in the comments! Have an amazing season 💕

Sunday, 6 December 2015

Christmas is approaching super fast, hence my family and I have been doing what we do every year around this time: bake Christmas cookies. When I first moved to Britain I was shocked to find out that they did not seem to know what proper Christmas cookies were (apart from Gingerbread men). In Germany people bake a variety of different sorts of cookies and biscuits around Christmas time. I believe my nan makes up to 30 different ones every year and they're all delicious. Anyways, I thought I would introduce one of the easiest and cutest recipes to you which always takes me back to my childhood.

First you need to combine all the dry ingredients for the cookies and mix them really well. Then mix the (softened) butter together with the eggs and slowly add this to the dry ingredients. Its best to use a spatula to combine everything to begin with and then make it into a dough ball using your hands. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place it into the fridge for 2 hours.

After the 2 hours take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out to a thickness of about 0.5cm. At this point you should preheat your oven to 175°. Use your cookie cutters (if possible christmasy ones) to form your cookies and place them on a baking tray lined with non stick baking paper. Place in the oven for about 12 minutes or until golden brown.

These are a selection of the best decorated ones ;)

Now comes the fun part. Wait till your cookies are completely cooled down and mix your icing (you can add food colouring if you want). Spread it onto your cookies and go crazy on the decorations. The more sprinkles the better. And voila - you have made a delicious batch of Christmas cookies! I hope you try out this recipe, if you do make sure to send me a picture on twitter. Have fun!

Wednesday, 2 December 2015

I've always loved adding a personal touch to someone's Christmas present because it shows you have actually put thought and time into it. This year I've decided to do this by handmaking the Christmas Cards. I went online and looked up the cutest Christmas Cards for inspiration and voila.

The supercute cards by Love Layla Design have been an amazing source of inspiration and I'd totally suggest you go over there and buy one (they're as good as DIY). I feel like everyone loves a funny or personalised Xmas Card so I went all out and made sure each card fit the personality of the receiver. Here are some of my favourites:

You should seriously try this because its soo easy, all you need is some sharpies or coloured pens, paper and your imagination. Go wild on it, there are no rules!
I hope you enjoyed this first Christmas themed blogpost, there are many more to come. Have an amazing day <3